Locusta
was born into the first century A.D. in one of the outer provinces of
Rome called Gaul , an area we now know as France . In her early years
in the countryside, it would appear that Locusta learned a great deal
about herbal lore and the plants around her. When she arrived in Rome
, she learned that the people around her were ambitious and greedy. There
were many people in Rome in those days who wanted to hurry along the deaths
of their rivals or their rich relatives, but it had to look like the death
was from natural causes. Locusta provided them with the means to accomplish
their goals - she became a professional poisoner. Although she was arrested
often for her activities, she had some influential clients among her customers
and she always seemed to be able to get out of jail pretty quickly.

Around
54 A.D., Locusta got a secret summons from the Empress Agrippina, the
fourth wife of Emperor Claudius. Agrippina’s ambitions were clear: She
wanted Nero, her son from a prior marriage, to be emperor of Rome . To
accomplish this, the 64-year-old Claudius needed to die. That’s where
Locusta came in.

Agrippina
knew that Claudius dearly loved mushrooms. She also knew the emperor had
food tasters. The two women devised a plan. One evening, the emperor’s
closest aide was sick, Agrippina bribed the food taster to stay out of
the way, and Locusta poisoned a big batch of mushrooms. After serving
the emperor much wine, Agrippina brought the poisoned mushrooms to Emperor
Claudius herself. Unsuspecting, Claudius gobbled the toxic delicacy down.

Soon
the emperor was doubled over with stomach cramps, gasping for air, unable
to speak. Agrippina, the devoted wife, fluttered frantically at his side
in feigned concern. Perhaps the dear emperor had eaten something that
disagreed with him? Locusta had provided a second weapon which Agrippina
now wielded, a feather with another lethal dose of poison on it. In her
apparent excitement to render aid to her stricken husband, Agrippina ran
the poisoned feather down his throat, allegedly to expel the toxic substances
from his stomach.

On
October 13, in 54 A.D., Emperor Claudius was dead and the 16-year-old
Nero was named emperor. Agrippina was thrilled! Locusta was arrested,
thrown into prison and given a death sentence.

But
Nero had his own rivals and his own fears. Claudius had a 14-year-old
son from a previous marriage named Britannicus. Nero knew that Britannicus
also had a claim to “his” throne, and Nero needed to make sure that Britannicus
was forever taken out of the way. Quietly, a few months after becoming
emperor, Nero ordered Locusta’s release from prison and developed a new
plan for her services.

One
evening at a family dinner, the wine was brought in and poured into goblets.
The food tasters each tried the goblets of wine and handed the goblets
to the family members; Nero, his mother Agrippina, several other close
relatives, and young Britannicus, completely unaware of the plot. As Britannicus
took a sip of the wine, he handed it back to the taster, complaining that
the wine was too hot. It was a curious Roman custom of the first century
to dilute their dinner wines with hot water. The food taster added some
cold water into the wine and handed it back to the boy. The taster failed
to taste the cold, clear water that he had added to Britannicus’s goblet
- and that was where Locusta had slipped her poisonous potion.

As
Britannicus fell into convulsions, Nero calmly reminded the dinner party
that Britannicus suffered from epilepsy and refused to summon any assistance
for the convulsing boy. Agrippina’s anguish was excruciating! She knew
exactly what her son was doing, she recognized the plot and all of this
without consulting her! She began to eat her dinner calmly, careful not
to let her face show any sign of the terror that was filling her heart
that she could be the next target. The other family members soon conformed
to the calm and cautious return to the evening meal while the boy foundered
and convulsed on the floor. No one was brave enough or foolish enough
to do anything about Britannicus against the Emperor Nero’s wishes.

Presently,
Nero called for the servants to remove Britannicus from the room. The
emperor’s would-be rival died a few hours later and was hastily buried
that same night, despite a great storm and the furtive gossip of the people
of Rome .

With
Emperor Nero as one of her satisfied customers, Locusta enjoyed a growing
reputation and expanding wealth. The emperor lavished her with land, money,
gifts, and a full pardon for all the poisonings she had been charged with
over the years. There were many imperial referrals and more assignments.
Locusta was very busy with her contract work in poisonings-for-hire, and
even opened a school where she taught others her knowledge of herbs and
toxins.

With
the patronage of the emperor, Locusta enjoyed a period of great business
success - until the Roman Senate finally gathered the nerve to condemn
Nero to death in 68 A.D. Locusta had thoughtfully furnished Nero with
a poison kit for himself, but in the confusion of the moment, Nero left
the kit behind. Before he could be brought before the Roman Senate to
stand trial for his many crimes, Nero killed himself with his own dagger.

As
for Locusta … after Nero’s demise, Locusta tried to keep a low profile.
But with her vast reputation as a professional poisoner, no longer supported
by the favor of the emperor, Locusta was executed later that year.